Restoration

"An ordinary man, an irresistible offer. In a world of seduction and power, temptation has its price."

1995 1h 57m EN

😐

6.1

MID

🍅

71%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

6.6

IMDB

★6.1TMDB · 145🍅71%Rotten Tomatoes●66Metacritic★6.6IMDB · 10,475

DramaRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

An aspiring young physician, Robert Merivel found himself in the service of King Charles II and saves the life of someone close to the King. Merivel joins the King's court and lives the high life provided to someone of his position. Merivel is ordered to marry his King's mistress in order to divert the queens suspicions. He is given one order by the king and that is not to fall in love. The situation worsens when Merivel finds himself in love with his new wife. Eventually, the King finds out and relieves Merivel of his position and wealth. His fall from grace leaves Merivel where he first started. And through his travels and reunions with an old friend, he rediscovers his love for true medicine and what it really means to be a physician.

“An ordinary man, an irresistible offer. In a world of seduction and power, temptation has its price.”

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Cast

Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Merivel
Meg Ryan
Katharine
Sam Neill
King Charles II
David Thewlis
John Pearce
Hugh Grant
Elias Finn
Polly Walker
Celia Clemence
Ian McKellen
Will Gates
Ian McDiarmid
Ambrose

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Michael Hoffman
Writers: Rupert Walters, Rose Termain
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 21% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Michael Hoffman, shot by Oliver Stapleton. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Garth Craven shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Robert Downey Jr. and Meg Ryan and Sam Neill carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "An ordinary man, an irresistible offer. In a world of seduction and power, temptation has its price.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0114272 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Michael Hoffman directs. Oliver Stapleton behind the camera. James Newton Howard scores. Garth Craven cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 21% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
231 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Michael Hoffman, shot by Oliver Stapleton. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Garth Craven shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Robert Downey Jr. and Meg Ryan and Sam Neill carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "An ordinary man, an irresistible offer. In a world of seduction and power, temptation has its price.".
8IMDB entry: tt0114272 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "jealousy", "court", "fountain", "medicine".

The technical file

Cinematography: Oliver Stapleton
Original score: James Newton Howard
Editing: Garth Craven
Production design: Eugenio Zanetti
Costume design: James Acheson
Runtime: 117 min · 1h 57m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $19,000,000
Box office: $4,005,941
Return: 21% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Restoration (1995)
Rotten Tomatoes: 71% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 66/100
IMDB rating: 6.6/10 · 10,475 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

Won 2 Oscars. 2 wins & 2 nominations total

Academy Award for Best Production Design
Academy Award for Best Costume Design

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Michael Hoffman

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Selected frames

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-11-23
★ 6/10
"Merivel" (Robert Downey Jnr.) is an aspiring doctor who just happens to be in the right place at the right time. Charles II (Sam Neill) has just been restored to Britain's post-Cromwellian thrones and is rather fond of his spaniel. It's poorly, the doctor makes it better and next thing he's enjoying the life of a libertine at the king's court. Now the king has a reputation as a bit of a Lothario, so he decides to get his favourite physician to marry one of his mistresses so as to turn the heat down a little. The only stipulation is that he isn't to fall in love with "Celia" (Polly Walker) but you can guess how successful that strategy proves. Furious, what the king giveth he can taketh away, and promptly "Merivel" is out on his ear - just as plague sweeps the country. Perhaps salvation might come in the form of wench "Katharine" (Meg Ryan)? At times it's bawdy fun, but for the most part it's just a rather dull interpretation of life at a legendarily vibrant and debauched court that's all too devoid of fun. Downey embraces the character to an extent, but I felt he relied way too much on the design (production and costume) to present his persona or to really show us how seriously he took his profession. Sam Neill is just plain wooden as the mischievous king and though the ensemble cast enter into the spirit of the film with varying degrees of enthusiasm, even this familiar array of British thesps can't make this sow's ear into a silk purse. History tells us that though Charles II was undoubtedly a ladies' man, he was also quite a philanthropist and had the writers tried to raise this above the level of a latter day "Carry On" film, we could have put some more meat on the bones of a story about people at a crossroads in history. There's some period Henry Purcell to be found amidst the soundtrack and it does look great, but somehow it just doesn't deliver.

Production companies